


New Beginnings

by MagiQueen



Series: Time Lord Tony [2]
Category: Doctor Who (2005), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Torchwood
Genre: Agent Ianto Jones, BAMF Tony Stark, Doctor Who References, Fix-It of Sorts, Fobwatched Time Lord, Genius Tony Stark, Heavy on the innuendo, Jack Harkness Being Jack Harkness, Jack Harkness Flirts, M/M, Spies & Secret Agents, Spy Natasha Romanov, Time Lord Tony Stark, Time Lords and Ladies (Doctor Who), Tony Stark Does What He Wants, Tony Stark Feels, Tony Stark Flirts, Tony Stark Has A Heart, come on it's Tony and Jack, just love those two being flirty, love Jack and Ianto, not SHIELD friendly, probably no smut tho, the only reason I watched Torchwood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-09
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-14 04:42:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29290041
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MagiQueen/pseuds/MagiQueen
Summary: Armed with the memories of a life long lived, The Traveller tries to adjust to the life of Tony Stark. With a couple of old friends to help him and SHIELD on his heels, he slowly comes to terms with his new reality.Set during Iron Man 2
Relationships: Jack Harkness/Ianto Jones, Jack Harkness/Ianto Jones/Tony Stark, Jack Harkness/Tony Stark
Series: Time Lord Tony [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2028868
Comments: 3
Kudos: 46





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Quick recap if you haven't read the 1st one: Tony is a time lord named The Traveller and Maria Stark was an alien who was once his companion.

He stared at the familiar place in amusement that was tinged with loneliness. Cardiff, and specifically this place seemed weird to him without the presence of the Rift in Space and Time. He had spent a fair bit of time here, looking at the group of humans running around trying to save the earth from creatures from the Rift in total amusement. He never got too close, he never got noticed. He was just another person in the background or at least he was until the accident.

He shook those thoughts out and looked at the cafe before him. It stood at the same spot and was appropriately called ‘The Rift’ although he doubted anyone in this universe got the context. He looked at the cafe for a minute through the rain. After a while he entered, the small bell warning his arrival. He closed the black umbrella and set it aside.

The cafe looked mundane. Empty without feeling so empty, spotless but not unusually so. It looked just like any other coffee shop, nothing unnatural about this one, except of course the people who ran it. He walked on carrying his TARDIS in what looked like a normal briefcase.

He smiled as he spotted the long blue coat that dragged into the ground. The man was sitting with his broad back to him, enjoying a cup of coffee. He walked towards him slowly.

He got to the table and sat down opposite him. “Captain Jack Harkness.” He greeted the man.

Jack looked at him, confusion evident in his gorgeous face. “Tony Stark, if I’m not mistaken.”

“You would be correct Captain.” He said as he put the briefcase in the ground beside him.

Jack looked at him curiously. Barely a second later, he already had a revolver pointed towards him. "You're about two decades older to be posing as Tony Stark." 

Tony laughed, unfazed. He brought the briefcase to the table and started opening it. "It's more closer to thirteen years really." He said and showed the open briefcase to Jack.

Jack stared at the view of the TARDIS for a while. He looked at him but made no attempt to lower the gun. Tony rolled his eyes. "Do I need to talk about timey-wimey stuff or whatever bullshit you're used to hearing." He said as he closed the briefcase. 

Jack laughed at that and lowered the gun. He looked at him up and down, as if he were a specimen he was trying to study. "Like what you see Jack?" Tony asked, amused. 

"Oh, I always do." Jack replied in the same tone. "Still, Tony Stark is a bit of a surprise, never thought of you as anything but Maria's kid." 

“With Maria settled down on earth and you two lovebirds off somewhere, it was getting quite boring roaming the galaxy alone.” He replied. "I wanted a change of pace, she helped." 

“And there was the small matter of half of the Ravagers being out for your blood.” Jack added dryly.

“And there was that.” He admitted. He smiled as he saw a cup of delicious coffee put before him. His smile grew as he looked up to gorgeous blue eyes. “Hello Ianto.”

“Thought we might be seeing you again Traveller.” Ianto remarked as he sat down next to Jack, his apron still on. “Although Tony Stark seems a bit high profile for you.”

“Trust me I had no idea. When I decided to lay low for a bit I did not realize that I would be waking up a literal superhero.” He replied. “I opened the watch in 2009, Iron Man was already born by then. The transformation isn't complete, I'm still partially human. And Tony Stark is too important a figure, I cannot get out of this one.”

“So you need our help.” Ianto concluded.

“Well, yes.” He admitted as he took a sip of the wonderful coffee. “And also there’s the fact that SHIELD is going to recruit Agent Jones here in about six months.”

Jack and Ianto exchanged glances. “Ianto hasn’t aged a single day since we found ourselves in this universe. Wouldn't that be a problem if we got too close to SHIELD?” He asked. 

“And whose fault is that?" He said leveling Jack with one of his blank stares. "Messing with Life and Death is a bad idea. When will you learn that?" 

"I keep telling you I didn't do anything. You were the one attempting inter-dimensional travel at the Rift. As far as I'm concerned all of this is your fault." Jack retorted.

"Can we not do this again?" Ianto asked. "I'm getting tired of both of you arguing about whose goddamn fault it was. It's been literal centuries, get over it." He glared at both of them. They shut up after that. 

"SHIELD is not going to notice it. It's not that noticeable really." Tony replied.

“Torchwood was one thing but SHIELD is more dangerous.” Jack still sounded worried.

“We need the information Jack. Ianto is perfect. He was a good Torchwood Agent, and he will be a perfect, blending in the shadows, SHIELD Agent.”

“You want me to spy on them for you.” Ianto simply said.

“I will be staying on this planet, in this timeline for a while. I need a credible source of information. You’ve been careful Ianto, but it is helpful to know exactly what SHIELD has on the two of you. And besides you’re really good at this whole secret agent thing.”

“They have nothing on us. I’ve made sure of it.” Ianto replied. “You cannot flatter me into accepting your offer Tony.”

“Really?” He asked, staring right into Ianto’s eyes, slowly covering the gap between them. “I haven’t turned on the charms yet my darling Ianto. Could you resist all that I have to offer?”

He could see Ianto shiver almost imperceptibly at his words. From the corner of his eyes, he could tell that Jack was pretty interested too. He smirked as he broke eye contact, lying back on the booth. “I’m up for almost anything you know. You two just have to say the word and I’m yours.”

“Why does it have to be Ianto? I could do it. I used to be a Time Agent.”

“Setting aside just how hot the fact that you were a Time Agent is. It’s just not doable Jack, Ianto passes for a human, you will definitely ring some bells. I will bring you right back to this year when we’re done.”

“So there will be an end to this?” Ianto asked.

“Oh yeah. I was thinking the 2012 thing. I’m pretty sure that’s the first recorded case of Alien Invasion here.”

Jack looked at Ianto and then turned towards Tony. "We have been looking at a way to get into SHIELD." He confessed. "It has to be credible. They cannot be suspicious." 

"Fury has just become the Director of SHIELD. This is perfect." Tony told them. "Six months is a long time to make it credible."

"It's going to be a long game. I'm going to have to spend years pretending to be a perfect agent." Ianto said. "It might even be fun. It was getting quite boring here anyways."

Tony rolled his eyes at that. "So, you two were planning this? Why?" 

"Maria's death was very suspicious. We tried searching for anything that could explain it." Jack started.

"The most logical conclusion was something Howard Stark was involved with. And that brought us to SHIELD." Ianto finished. 

Tony felt his anger grow at that. He had already mourned his mother's death as Tony Stark. Now he was reliving that experience once more. Not a day went by when he didn't wish she was there beside him. He just wanted to find out whoever it was that killed her. He controlled his anger, it wouldn't do good to lose his control now. There were so many things to do. 

"I hated that guy you know." He said instead. "Even before being his son. Always thought Maria was too good for him." 

"He wasn't half bad." Jack said and then turned to him, changing the subject. “I'm curious. What’s with the time agent thing? I thought you Time Lords hated us.”

“You’re confusing me with those uppity bastards Jack." He smiled at him. "Time is wonderful, the way she ebbs and flows. So many possibilities, so much potential encased within. Anyone who has ever parsed the web of time, manipulated it just enough to reach wherever they wanted to go, is very very attractive.“ 

Jack stared at him. “Well, I don’t certainly hear that often.” He replied.

“Well, if you boys have some free time, I can tell it as many times as you want to hear.”

* * *

“What’s going on Boss?” Happy asked him. It had been more than five minutes of them just sitting idly in Bleecker Street. “What are we doing here? What are we waiting for?”

Tony smiled and pointed to 177A. “See that building Happy. That’s the home of, well a cult really. They call themselves spiritual or mystic or something like that. I have to go meet the leader of that cult. She likes to appear very mysterious and all-knowing. We’re waiting because I will not go up those steps and have her open the door just as I reach there. I refuse to bow down to that bullshit.”

Happy laughed. “That makes no sense Boss.” He said between laughter. Tony smiled at him. He had lost Maria and everything he was but he also gained some wonderful friends during his human years. He truly loved them.

“You know what, play some music Hap. We might as well listen to some tunes while we wait for her to send one of her brainwashed followers.” Happy shook his head but did so.

“That still doesn’t explain why we’re here Boss.” He asked after a while.

“She knew my mother. I just wanted to talk to her.” Tony said. He was spared of any further questioning when a man in gold robes got out of the house and came straight towards them. Happy turned down the music and he rolled down the window as the man came closer.

“Yes.” He said cheekily. The man looked annoyed at that. This was going to be fun.

“The Ancient One is asking if you’re planning to enter our Sanctum now or if we should expect you sometime later?” He asked politely.

Tony shot a look towards Happy at that and shrugged. “Well, somebody has to tell her that Ancient One just sounds pretentious.” He said and got out of the car. He loved the color the Sorcerer was getting at his remarks, but he stayed silent.

“You were not expecting Tony Stark to come to your door and insult your leader, were you?” He made small talk as they walked the small distance towards the door.

The man glared at him but only replied with a small “No.”

He hummed. “The only benefit of being him.” He remarked, much to the confusion of the Sorcerer, he was sure.

She was waiting for him as he went inside. “Welcome to the New York Sanctum, Master Traveller.” She greeted him with a bow which he returned.

“You know when I said ‘I was just a traveller’, I was not expecting everyone to call me by that name.” He grumbled as he followed her towards another room. It was beautiful, all floor mats and tiny tables and a pot of tea laid beautifully.

“Oh no. I refuse to drink that leaf juice.” He declared as he sat down on one of the mats.

She waved her hand and the sweet aroma of coffee floated around the room. He smiled as he reached for the cup. “I do hope you’re not here to just tell me that the name Ancient One sounds pretentious.”

He shrugged. “It is a little pretentious but comparatively to the rest of your species you are Ancient.” He took a sip of the coffee.

“But not compared to you.” She remarked as she sipped her tea. “I’ve lived through so much, seen so much but I cannot even imagine what you’ve gone through.”

He smiled a sad smile. “Yeah, I’m old. But at least I had the luxury of leaving whenever I wanted to all those times. Now I’m stuck here, unable to do anything while at the same time having so much power within my hands.” He took a gulp. “This is not me. I make small changes, I do small things, I don’t think I’m ready to be in the middle of a time so crucial to your history.”

She smiled. “You make those small changes knowing they will grow into big ones, knowing that that will change everything. This is not much different. You are merely interfering at a later point in time than you are used to.”

“But that’s so much different. Those small changes were planned, I knew what they would lead to, what my actions do to the flow of time, how they change things. But now I have to make decisions in the moment, big decisions that alter the fate of humanity itself. I’m used to being in the shadows, my dear, not under the spotlight.”

“Yes. But you have to. Such is the path you have chosen.” She replied. “Besides, not all of your decisions were planned. Some of them were made in the spur of the moment and they turned out just fine.”

Tony smiled at that, she continued. “You keep seeing this as a bad thing, Tony but this doesn’t have to be. This is your chance to stay, look at all the wonders your actions have brought to the world, witness the unintentional damages firsthand. Actually see how you change the world. You aren’t going to do it just because you’re Tony Stark. You’ve always done it, and you will always do it.”

“You’ve certainly grown wise since the last time I saw you.” He commented smiling.

“It might not have been long for you but it certainly has been for me.” She replied. “Are you not going to ask about my longevity or how I achieved it?”

“That is none of my business, my dear.” He replied. “It is your mess and whatever comes of it, you will deal with it. I trust you that much.” She nodded somberly. “Besides, you've done good work with this place. And most importantly, you've kept that gem safe. Even I could not sense its presence.”

"I try." She simply said. 

He nodded and got up to leave, she joined him.

“Thank you for talking to me. Telling me everything I needed to hear.” He said as they were leaving.

“Anytime, Tony. After all you’ve done for me, it’s the least I could do.”


	2. Chapter 1

He looked at the Stark Expo in wonder. It was going brilliantly. The first thing he’d done was to promote Pepper and make her in charge of the entire thing. If this went brilliantly, her reputation would soar, the success of this expo elevating it even more. He had of course prepared for the eventuality that something could fail, if somewhere, somehow it went wrong. Hopefully, it won't come to that.

He had toyed with the idea of bringing Iron Man to open this thing but decided against it. He still did not feel comfortable with the suit, he did not still truly feel like he was Iron Man. He’d done his job as Iron Man, took out the terrorists like he knew Tony Stark would but it still didn’t feel right. He’d made so many more versions of the suit, tried so many combinations, with his knowledge of the universe and everything that Tony Stark was, he was able to come up with so many more but none of them felt just right, none of them felt like it was him.

He walked on to the expo, looking at the marvellous creations displayed within it, looking at the wonders humans had come up with. Such wonderful race, Humans. They never ceased to amaze him. He supposed he was one of them now, even if he still felt like he was walking around wearing another man’s skin.

He tried to shake those thoughts out and instead focused on congratulating the participants. He slowly made his way towards the car where Happy was waiting. He’d just gotten in when a young woman approached him with the Senate Summons. He smiled a true smile as he looked at the Summons. This was going to be interesting.

* * *

The first thing he did when he reached his lab was to look at all of his suits, even the ones he’d safely hidden away because the technology was too ahead of his time. He did not like the fact that they were trying to steal his suits but he was wise enough to know he couldn’t do this alone. He needed someone he could trust by his side, and he needed to deal with the government before they succeeded in fucking him over.

He marked the few suits he thought had potential and tasked DUM-E and U to bring them over. He was quite proud of the two bots, one of the things he liked about being Tony Stark were his children. He loved all of them. When they finally did it, he got to work.

A few hours later, he was done creating his masterpiece. Everything was perfect, from all he could tell, everything was going to be perfect. Wiping his grease-stained hands on a rug, he tasked JARVIS with calling Rhodey.

He answered soon enough, looking at Tony with concerned glances. “Everything all right, Tones?” He asked.

“Yeah, everything’s fine Platypus. Why’d you ask?” It was a weird thing for Rhodey to ask. He’d known him for a long time. Maybe he noticed that something was off.

“It’s just I have barely seen you lately man. You’re either locked up in your lab or you’re out there fighting those terrorists that captured you. It’s been a while since we talked.” He answered.

He hated the surge of guilt that showed up at that. He had been planning so many things, thinking about so much, trying to do so much that he had ignored his closest friend, his best friend. He tried to blink the tears away but judging by the change of expression Rhodey definitely noticed.

“Hey hey hey. It’s okay Tony. I know this past year has been hard for you. I just want to be there for you man.”

He smiled. “I’m getting there Rhodey-bear. I won’t lie to you and tell you that I’m okay but I will get there.” He said honestly. “Where are you? I would love to have you around.”

“Yeah, sure. I’d like that Tony.”

Tony smiled and disconnected the call. He looked at the new suit before him. It was just perfect for Rhodey. Now he just had to figure out a way to give this to him and still deal with the Senate Hearing mess.

He still hadn’t come up with any ideas when Rhodey arrived. He sighed and went to greet his friend. Rhodey was in the living room looking at the Senate Summons as he came to. “This why you called me Tones?” He asked.

Tony shrugged. “I’ve got something for you.” He said and motioned Rhodey towards his lab.

He had already locked up the more unbelievable suits. He was done with thinking things through and planning for each and every eventuality, no more insistently thinking about future changes his actions could bring. He would just give Rhodey the damn suit he’d been working on and deal with whatever repercussions that act brought. He was not a traveller, he was not even a Time Lord anymore. He was just a regular old human who had to live their regular old lives day by day and he should act like it.

He loved the way Rhodey’s eyes glittered as they entered the lab. It was like watching a kid in a candy store. He smiled as he looked at Rhodey appreciating all of his work. “You’ve been working on a lot.” Rhodey commented as he looked around.

“It’s useless, all of that lot.” Tony replied. “It looks great but it works like a broken radio in a dumpster.” He grumbled.

“Tony I’ve seen you turn a broken radio in a dumpster into something of a marvel. Literally.” Rhodey reminded him. Tony laughed at the memory that that brought up.

“Yeah, yeah. Just get up on that podium. The bots will help you in one. I’ve designed it specifically for you.” Rhodey looked at him wide eyed at that. “Don’t look at me like that Rhodey, of course I did. I know I can’t do this shit alone and there’s no one I would trust but you.” He said sincerely. Rhodey nodded and followed his orders.

He made Rhodey go through a couple of exercises and movements and dutifully recorded the reaction times and improvements he could make in the suit. Occasionally he did those improvements while Rhodey was still in the suit, making sure his friend wasn’t harmed or anything. Rhodey watched him work, and continued to do so when he got out sitting in the corner of the lab and just marveling at him.

When he was finished he beckoned Rhodey over to him to run the tests once again but to his surprise once Rhodey got there he refused. “It’s okay Tony. I know it will work. I’ve seen you make it. If I do this, you will find something wrong with it and insist on working on this. You’ve been working for hours, get some rest. I’m not going anywhere until I’ve made sure you’ve eaten something.” Tony thought about protesting but let it go at Rhodey's concerned gaze.

A while later. They were sitting down, eating Chinese takeout. “I didn’t realize that much work took to creating one suit.” Rhodey commented.

Tony nodded blearily. “It has to be perfect Rhodey. Anything subpar wouldn’t work.”

Rhodey nodded. “I understand that. Thank you for this, Tones but you cannot give the suit to me outright.”

“What? Why not? I want to.”

“We have to go through a process Tones. We have to do this right. You give this to me, they will start asking for more, and that would just not be possible. I’ve been asked to write a report about Iron Man. We start there. The materials and effort it requires to even create one suit, the complexities of that, the training that is needed to operate it fully. That is key. Something as complex as this needs all those things.”

“Wow.” Tony blinked. “I was just thinking make an Iron Clad contract and give it to you, maybe even some sort of security measure so only you could operate it. But whatever you think best Rhodey.” He said sincerely. He could trust Rhodey with this and he was just going to do that.

“A few hours ago, I wouldn’t be sure Tony but now I am. This is the reason your suits are and will be superior to anyone else's and I will do everything I can to make sure that that point is driven across.” He replied.

Tony looked at his friend and smiled. He was truly lucky to have such wonderful people beside him. He was running himself raggard, trying to think of everything and anything, always fearing that he missed something, but now he wouldn’t do that. He would just trust his friends, those who had stood by him through so much and would continue to do so. With those thoughts in his mind, he slept right there on the sofa, Rhodey looking at him smiling as he slept peacefully.

* * *

He was just tinkering around when JARVIS informed him that he had a message from Ianto. It was quite fun watching Ianto work. He really was the perfect spy. Nothing he did was suspicious and he had been with SHIELD for literal years now, they had no reason to be suspicious of him. He still insisted on going through so many layers of security.

He kept on working as JARVIS kept the whole thing running. It would take a while to go through them all, he would get some work done in the meantime. When it was finally completed, he put the soldering iron down and faced the screen.

Ianto was sitting in the sun, enjoying coconut water. Tony stared a while to take his fill of the gorgeousness before him and finally asked. “What are you doing?”

“Poisoning a wannabe dictator during his vacation.” Ianto replied.

“You seem to be enjoying this thing.”

“Better than fighting Cybermen.”

“So, what’s the word? What’s going on?” He asked.

“Two things. They think you’re slowly being poisoned to death and they’ve got a spy observing you.”

“To make sure I die or to save me?” He asked.

“Could be anything. She’s Russian. Agent Natasha Romanoff. Trained in the Red Room, she's very good. She’s currently posing as Natalie Rushman in Legal.”

“That’s a bit on the nose isn’t it? The same initials thing.” He commented. “What am I dying of?”

“Palladium Poisoning.” Tony stared at him blankly, Ianto continued. “Heavy Metal. Powers that thing on your chest.”

“I replaced that thing months ago. It was obvious that I needed to replace that. Just how stupid do they think Tony Stark is?”

“No metal from earth can replace that Tony. They’ve run the simulations." Ianto informed him. "They’re currently preparing some short-lasting cure or something like that.”

“Oh. I’ll just create a new element or something.” Tony said. Ianto shrugged.

“I’ve already given JARVIS everything I could but those were the main thing. Just be on the lookout for Romanoff, she’s dangerous. And pretend like you’re dying or whatever.”

“Why would I do that? I’m Tony fucking Stark, I’ve already created the bloody miracle element or whatever.” He shouted as Ianto rolled his eyes.

“Just be careful with Romanoff. Gotta go.”

“Have fun poisoning that dictator. And do send some photos, you look gorgeous.” Tony added and cut the communications off.

He sat down on one of the chairs and looked at the nearest camera, directly addressing JARVIS. “J, open a new folder titled Bullshit New Elements. We need to brainstorm.”

“Actually Sir.” His tone made Tony look upwards, eyes narrowed. “I believe the Stark Expo model carries within it a model for the creation of a new element.”

Tony blinked. “Howard was pretty nuts about not changing anything there.” He finished lamely.

“Would you like me to run some simulations on it to check if it’s a viable replacement for Palladium Sir?”

“You know I was joking about the new element right J? How does this happen? The odds of this are astronomical.”

“As a Time Lord you are attuned to the workings of time in a very unique way Sir. This could be a side effect of your incomplete transformation.”

“Or it could be a one in ten gazillion chance of me accidentally saying the right thing. Just run the simulation. It will probably work.” He grumbled and went back to work.

“Oh and JARVIS, if you decide to go full Skynet on me.” He paused for effect. “Go nuts.”

“I do not wish to control the planet Sir, but I will keep that in mind.” JARVIS replied dryly. Tony laughed and went back to his work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next up: Natasha's entry and Jack comes back cause I love him.


	3. Chapter 2

Tony was trying to meditate when Pepper just barged in. She just kept staring at him, half formed words already disappearing in lieu of the sight before her. Illuminated by all the candles beside him, Tony was sitting in a cross-legged position, a perfect picture of a calm man, one who he very much was not.

Pepper took a seat and calmly said. “I came to talk to you about this insane thing.” She pointed at the paper in her hands. “But that looks more insane.” She gestured with the paper.

“How is trying to better myself insane?” He asked, closing his eyes and slowly counting his breaths as he was once taught from the spiritual folks at Cagua 56R. He could just barely feel both of his hearts. They were still there, just muted. Thankfully, the partial transformation hadn’t done any physical harm.

He opened his eyes when Pepper hadn’t replied in a while and found her still staring at him. He smiled at her reaction and slowly got up. She started talking again as he extinguished the candles. “Is it because of that Monk in New York? Happy said that you said she knew your mom.”

Tony smiled as JARVIS turned on the lights, remembering the first time he and Maria had come to Earth. It was just by chance that they met her, but it had been a rather fortunate coincidence and it had ended rather nicely. “Yes. I have some beautiful but rather fuzzy memories of the three of us.” He replied almost truthfully.

“You called her a cult leader.”

“She runs this spiritual thing. It’s basically a cult, but a nice one you know. Helps people and stuff.” He tried to explain but from her expression it didn’t seem like Pepper understood.

“Uh huh.” She continued looking at him.

“What’s got you rattled Pep?” He asked. “I mean before you came in obviously. We’ll talk about this meditation thing later.” He smiled.

“YOU.” She shouted, hitting him with the paper. It didn’t hurt but he still tried to get away from her incessant attempts.

“Okay. Whatever I did, I’ll fix it. No need to get you all bothered about it Pep.” He tried taking the paper away from her but she persisted on.

“You can’t just make me CEO Tony. It doesn’t work like that.” She grumbled. Tony smiled and just enveloped her into a hug. She melted down in his arms.

After a while he broke away and looked at her fondly. “You’re brilliant Pepper. You’re very much deserving of it. I can make you CEO. It’s also legally okay, I can name my successor. Calm down. It’s okay.” He explained.

“But but--” She started saying but Tony stopped her.

“No buts Pepper. Repeat after me. You’re brilliant and you deserve this.”

“I’m brilliant and I deserve this?” She sounded unsure.

“No question marks Pep. You are the most brilliant person I know. This is not a half thought out decision. I’ve been wanting to do this for so long.” He told her. She just looked at him.

He spotted DUM-E coming over with the champagne. “So, what do you think Pep? Will you do me the huge huge favor of being my CEO? What do you say?”

She looked at the incoming robot carrying the tray of champagne and throwing her hands up in the universal sign of ‘I give up’ she slumped down on the couch. “I guess.” She finally replied.

He laughed outright at that and set out to pour both of them a glass.

* * *

He was in his office looking at all the paperwork he had to do when he heard some very familiar footsteps. He was getting rather tired of this human thing where they had to work all the bloody time so he was very glad that he was going to get a very happy ending to a rather boring and mundane day.

He opened the door even before the man entered. Graceful legs sliding in with the swish of the dark blue coat he always wore. Jack was all smiles as he entered, arms open in and greeted him. “Tony!!!”

Tony smiled at the rather exuberant greeting he got and addressed Jack. “Not that I mind the delicious view before me but what are you doing here Jack?”

“I got bored.” Jack simply said as came closer.

“Wait wait wait. Don’t tell me I messed up. I did get Ianto back to the right time right Jack?” He rarely did mess up but time was a curious thing, sometimes you just couldn’t be sure you got it right.

“Oh yeah. We had a brilliant time in Welsh countryside.” Jack said, pushing the papers away and sitting down on his desk, giving him a great view. “But he got the spy bug. He wants to create his own shadow agency now. He’s off to some planet or other setting things up.”

Tony shrugged. “That’s not a bad idea. He would be excellent at running his own agency.”

“Yes he would.” Jack agreed. “It’s not a bad idea at all but he’s away because of that and I’m bored.” Jack said looking at him rather alluringly. “I was thinking you might help me alleviate some of that boredom.”

Tony put his pen down and gave Jack his full attention, slowly taking in the gorgeousness that was before him. "Do go on." He said, appreciating Jack in all his glory. 

Jack looked around and said turning. "You know I have a thing about offices. They feel exotic to me." 

Tony chuckled as he watched Jack. "Yes I know. Yours wasn't half bad actually, although all those plants might've killed the mood." 

Jack turned to look at him curiously. "How do you know what my Torchwood office looked like?" He asked. Tony simply smiled in response. "Did I use Retcon on you?" 

Tony snorted. "Who did you not drug?" He asked in response. Unfortunately Pepper chose that moment to enter with another redhead in tow. Both of them stared at the display before them in abject confusion.

“Hey Pep.” He greeted and went back to enjoying the view that Jack was currently providing him.

“What’s going on Tony?” Pepper asked. “And who is this? Excuse me, sir. What are you doing here? And why do you look so familiar?”

“Oh Hello.” Jack got up and went to Pepper taking her hand and planting a small kiss there. “Captain Jack Harkness. Pleasure to meet you.” He introduced himself. The other redhead gave him a warning look and he stopped in his tracks, instead focusing all his charm on Pepper.

Tony rolled his eyes. “Don’t mind him Pep. Jack’s just an old friend.” He said. Pepper looked dazed. “I have no idea why he looks familiar.” He added.

Jack smiled as if remembering a memory. “Maria’s paintings.” He supplied. Tony smiled too, remembering the three paintings that Maria had done of Jack in varying levels of aging. The day she painted them was worth remembering.

The other redhead seemed very very confused at everything that was going on. “Excuse me. What’s going on and why am I here?”

Tony directed that question at Pepper who had by now managed to collect herself. “That’s Natalie. JARVIS pinged her as a potential candidate for your assistant.” She explained.

Tony narrowed his eyes, he was supposed to be on the lookout for someone with that name wasn’t he? He shrugged and replied. “I do need an assistant.” He hummed. “If JARVIS thinks you’re good enough and if you want the job it’s yours.”

“And here I was coming to offer to be your assistant.” Jack drawled as he sat down on the table wiggling his brows. “I can think of no better way for you to order me around Sir.” He added, making Tony’s pupils go wild.

Tony barely managed to control himself. “That is not a bad idea.” He muttered appreciating Jack. “Not actually my assistant mind you. Red over there still gets that.”

Pepper cleared her throat. “Whatever weird sex thing you’re planning Tony, you’re going to have to do it later. We have to sign these documents first.” Tony groaned at the prospect of more paperwork but nodded.

Jack hopped down from the desk and said. “I should leave you to it. Any chance that British butler of yours could give me a tour?”

Tony nodded and then added. “Jack, no seducing my employees.”

Jack turned around to give him a saucy grin. “Of course not Sir.” He added cheekily and left. Tony watched him leave, the long coat leaving so much to the imagination and yet still adding so much to it.

When he finally turned to Pepper, she was looking at him with a raised eyebrow. “Who the hell was that Tony?” She asked.

“That was Jack. He is simply irresistible isn’t he?” He said making Pepper blush. He turned towards the papers that the redhead had put on his desk. “Okay, what are we doing? I sign this and I don’t have as much work as I usually do right?” He asked.

Pepper nodded. He could see the other redhead rolling her eyes at that. “Well, let’s get this over with then. The worst thing about being human is all this mundane, pointless work. Anything I could do to lessen that, I would do happily.” He remarked.

When they were all done, he shooed the redhead away but asked Pepper to stay. Pepper looked confused but accepted nonetheless. “What’s going on Tony?” She asked as she watched him lock all the doors and make sure that they were alone.

“JARVIS?” He asked. “Is that redhead the spy?” Pepper’s eyes narrowed at that, her head automatically turning towards the doors through which the aforementioned redhead had left only moments prior.

JARVIS activated the hologram from the desk and showed the picture of the redhead, looking all sorts of attractive in a leather catsuit. “I believe so Sir. Agent Natasha Romanoff according to SHIELD’s profiles.”

“And JARVIS pinged her because of that?” Pepper asked looking through her profile. “Why are we making her your assistant? We should have had her thrown out.”

“SHIELD will send another one if we throw this one out.” He said. “They’re not known for giving up Pep. We’ll just deal with this one, instead of worrying where the other one is. We’ll keep an eye out, make sure she doesn’t get any confidential information, stuff like that.”

Pepper nodded. “She doesn’t know we’re onto her already. We’ll have the advantage.” She continued perusing the profile. “But she sounds dangerous Tony.” She remarked.

“I’m flattered that they sent a top agent for me. That’s what makes this more fun Pep.” He said grinning as Pepper rolled her eyes.

“She’s your problem. I don’t have to deal with her, you do.” She remarked. He nodded serenely, agreeing with her. “Just be careful, she seems to be dangerous. I’ve got that watch thing you gave me should she ever attack me.”

All done with reading about the spy amongst them, Pepper got up to leave. As she was doing so, the door suddenly opened letting Jack in. She stared at him and continued on, pausing to add. “I’ll leave you two gentlemen to it then.”

Jack grinned at that and looked at Tony who grinned back. “Now, where were we.”


	4. Chapter 3

Tony sat down on the restaurant blankly staring at the car racing thing on the TV. He understood why the humans loved watching this thing, watching fast things go even faster but he wasn’t much interested, his mind occupied elsewhere.

He was brought down back to the present as Jack sat down beside him. "You know there's a race of fish-creatures that are absolutely flummoxed by fast cars. Caught a couple of them at my time at Torchwood."

"Not to sound rude or anything but what're you still doing here?" Tony asked, twirling the glass with earth alcohol around. "I thought you'd be gone after that rather wonderful night."

"You're completely out of depth with this Superhero business Tony. Anyone can see that. I'm still here to help you when I can nudge you in the right direction." Jack told him placing the bulky red and gold briefcase before him. The thing looked disastrous but at least it was a believable advancement to earth's technology.

"That feels like a push, not a nudge." Tony said while wondering if he could do anything to make the briefcase a little less conspicuous, a bit more elegant.

Jack snorted as he drank his glass of water. "Maybe." He admitted. "Regardless this is needed."

Tony kept staring at the hideous briefcase and then turned towards the race that was happening on the TV. "Not a bad place for an attack." He remarked. "But you're right. I don't know what I'm doing with this hero thing. This isn't me."

"It's not just you, it's your whole race. I've rarely seen a Time Lord stay in one place for long."

"I forgot you used to travel with The Doctor." Tony said. "What was he like during the later years? In the Academy he was pretty odd, always running around with Koschei doing whatever he was doing."

Who's Koschei?" Jack asked just as his redhead assistant returned.

"Right. He took a pretentious name later on. You know him." He said, careful of his words now that the spy was nearby. "The one with the maniacal laugh and all those Master plans that failed." He could see Jack's eyes widen with recognition. "Oh, those two were inseparable back in the day. I'm not surprised that that continued on till you came in the picture."

"He tortured me for a year straight." Jack said, his voice suddenly very dry.

"Oh. Sorry about that then." He apologized for making Jack remember the painful times. "Oddly enough. That is my point. He spent what gazillion years in that shell and when he returned he went full murderous bastard. What if that happens to me?"

"Oh trust me Tony." Jack said in a dark voice. "I will kill you before that happens."

Tony laughed and he clapped Jack on his shoulders. "That could work." He turned towards his assistant. "Red, write it down. If I ever turn full villian Jackie here is allowed to kill me." The spy looked alarmed and confused at that but did so.

Jack grumbled and left a few moments later, leaving the briefcase with the Iron Man armor inside it and giving it a pointed look. Tony looked at his assistant who still looked so confused and motioned her to sit down.

“Something eating at you Red?” He asked.

She looked at him puzzled. “You don’t remember my name do you?” She simply said.

He shrugged. “Don’t take it personally. I’m a bastard, everyone knows that.” He took a sip of the alcohol. Earth’s liquor didn’t affect him so much now but it was rather fun to drink. “You’re curious about Jack, aren’t you?”

“I looked him up, there’s been no Captain Jack Harkness in the last 50 years.” She simply said. He wondered how amused Ianto must’ve been with SHIELD looking into Jack and finding nothing.

“That’s not his real name. It’s simply the name he’s most comfortable with, the person he is right now.” He replied.

“You’re trusting your life, your legacy, you’re trusting Iron Man to someone whose real name you don’t even know?”

He sighed. “A name is more fluid than most people realize. It is not who you are always, it’s just who you are at this current time. Right now I’m Tony Stark, one of many in the long list of people I will be. I don’t like being Tony Stark, it comes with so much baggage, all those people who hate me for simply existing, those who believe I’m just an extension of Howard.”

She looked even more puzzled. “You’re not making much sense Mr. Stark.”

He faced her fully. “What is your name?” He asked softly.

“Natalie Rushman.”

“Okay Natalie. That’s you today, but the person you will be tomorrow will be completely different.” He could hear her heartbeat quickening, feel her worrying whether he’d found her out or not. “We all change, sometimes slowly, sometimes abruptly. Everyone we meet, everything we interact with, everywhere we go changes us. Sometimes we notice those changes, sometimes we don’t. But we are rarely the same people we once were.”

“That’s um- very philosophical Mr. Stark.” She finally managed.

It was, but it was also very literal for him. He was quite literally a different person than the one who’d met Maria once, very different from the one who’d helped her leave her kingdom to roam with him throughout the galaxy and very much different from the one he’d watched her settle with Howard Stark on earth.

“You don’t need to know someone’s name to know who they are now. People change- they take on new identities and they throw away their old ones. It matters not who they were, it matters who they choose to be now, it matters who they become later. Time is a curious, wonderful thing, changing people so drastically with just her touch.”

“Okay.” She finally said. “But the other thing still doesn’t make sense. You’re still Tony Stark. Why wouldn’t you be?” She asked.

“Isn’t hating yourself the most human thing you can do?” He asked in return, confusing her even further. “I am Tony Stark, and I will be him for a relatively long time. But that’s not all I am, that’s not all I will be. One day, Tony Stark will die. On that day, I will cease to be him and start to be someone else.”

She still looked confused. “You’re talking in the sense of the Hindu concept of Reincarnation.”

He nodded. Reincarnation, Regeneration, they were basically the same thing. He would quite literally be a different person once Tony Stark died, he would literally be different species. He jolted as he realized that SHIELD and by extension his pretty assistant still thought he was dying.

“But that day is far from now.” He said, sighing. “I have so many things to do before I transcend to a higher form.”

She looked at him. “I hadn’t realized you were so philosophical Mr. Stark.” She admitted.

He smiled. “I recently reconciled with my mother’s friend who is a Monk.” That was easy enough to prove. He knew Maria often used to go to the Sanctum to visit her, the only person in all of earth who knew she could freely talk to.

The commotion on the TV suddenly stopped their lovely philosophical talk. He watched as he looked at a manic or other attacking people with glowing whips. He sighed and picked up the bulky briefcase. “Well, gotta go save the people by being Iron Man. Where do these villains even come from? It’s frankly rather annoying.” He left his spy assistant at that.

* * *

The fight took more out of him than he realized. This guy, whoever he was, was rather good at this. He looked at the armor that he wore, being impressed by it despite himself. He didn’t think anyone on earth had technology this good, it was really impressive.

He could see his assistant waiting for him but he went straight past her and towards where he knew Jack was. She followed him. He found Jack sitting in the bar sipping water and looking at the TV. “Good stuff. A lot of people look interested though.” Jack commented as he sat down beside him. He ordered his own drink and turned to talk to Jack.

“Any more attackers I should be worried about Captain?” He asked point blank, not caring whether the spy beside him heard or not.

Jack looked at her making Tony also look at her shocked face. “You’re a spy.” She said, realization evident on her face.

Jack laughed that enthralling laugh of his. “Not exactly but yes I was an Agent once. Not anymore.” He said. “But that stuff keeps with you, all those skills you’ve learned. So of course I knew something was gonna happen today.”

He kept looking at his assistant now, watching her expression change into wonder and amazement. “Were you CIA? That must’ve been so cool.” Jack looked at him one eyebrow raised, he shrugged keeping his smile at bay.

“No.” Jack simply said. “It was a secret agency. It doesn’t exist anymore and never really did exist. Technically I don’t exist anymore.”

Tony laughed as he sipped at his whiskey. “Okay Jack, stop scaring the poor girl. That guy, he is Howard’s problem isn’t he? Fought like he had a point to prove. It was personal for him.”

“I don’t know Tony. This was all I knew.”

Tony smiled. “Ah, but that tells me more than anything Jack.” He said. “I’m gonna have to talk to him, put the fear of whatever god he has chosen to worship in him and make sure he doesn’t try to reanimate the vendetta against Howard on me any more than he already has.”

Jack smiled. “Like I said, a lot of people looked interested.” He accentuated his words with a cursory glance at the restaurant. Tony noticed his eyes lingering more at Hammer who was still watching the replay of the fight that was being shown on TV.

Tony nodded. “I can trust you to deal with that.” He simply said.

Jack nodded and slid a small wooden box towards him. He knew what was in the box even before he opened it. He gave the Vortex Manipulator one cursory look and shut the box, making sure that his spy assistant couldn’t see. He smiled and raised his eyebrows at Jack.

Jack rolled his eyes. “Yeah Yeah I get it. This is trash compared to yours but it is subtle and easily portable.”

“It might be useful.” He said understanding that this wasn’t for him but for Ianto. He smiled and added. “It is very very rudimentary Jack. As much as I am impressed by the fact that you lot were able to make this, it is essentially garbage. Don’t worry, I’ll be sure to make some improvements on this before I give this back to your charming husband.”

He could hear his assistant audibly gasp at the last word. Jack smiled at her but did not say anything. He continued. “Don’t worry about portable though. I manage just fine.” He said, twisting the ring in his finger.

Jack stared. “No.” He simply said, unable to believe that his TARDIS could be that small or that inconspicuous.

Tony smiled. “We don’t all have big blue easily recognizable boxes Jack.” He simply said making Jack laugh. After a while he sobered up. “You’re leaving aren’t you?”

Jack nodded. “My work here is done Tony. He will be returning soon and we do have a lot of work to do.”

Tony nodded and turned towards his spy assistant, “Red, can you go tell Happy to bring the car around. There’s a prisoner that I have to visit before we leave this country.” She nodded and left.

“I’m gonna miss looking at that gorgeous face.” Tony smiled as he went to hug Jack. “If I never see you again before you manage to get back, just do one thing for me.”

“You always seem confident that we will get back.” Jack muttered.

“Trust me Jack. I’ve met the future you. You will get back home, you’ve got so much to do back there.”

“But you won’t?” Jack asked.

“Probably not, I’ve made peace with it.” He replied. “As I was saying if you return back to our universe, just blow my lab up. Things there shouldn’t be ever found by a human. It will destroy that earth.”

Jack looked at him in alarm before smiling. “Is it just the ones I’ve met or are all Time Lords a little bit mad?” He asked.

“Oh, all of them, they just don’t like to admit it.” He replied.

Jack laughed. “I do hope we see each other again Tony. I’ve enjoyed your company.” He said earnestly.

Tony smiled and came a bit closer to Jack. He could hear Happy pulling in. He went forward and kissed Jack, who happily kissed him back. After they separated, Jack said “Give my love to Ianto.” and left.


	5. Chapter 4

He looked at his schedule in amusement. The smile still playing on his lips, he called his spy assistant. She promptly came in and was greeted with the sight of him looking at his schedule on the StarkPad in open amusement.

“Everything all right Mr. Stark?” She asked.

“Of course it is.” He replied and beckoned her over. “Come here Red. There’s something wrong with this. I would love an explanation.”

“Your schedule Sir?” She asked as she looked at it. “I don’t see anything wrong with it.” He could hear her heartbeat quickening. She hid it well but he could tell that she was nervous.

“Of course there is.” He circled the slot labeled ‘Meeting with Nicholas Fury’ and looked at her expectantly.

“I don’t know what to say Mr. Stark. Mr. Fury called and scheduled an appointment.” He loved how she was holding onto her calm facade.

He laughed openly at that. “That bastard waited in the pitch black inside my house just so he could talk to me. There is no way he called to schedule a meeting my dear Agent.” He informed her, loving the way her face turned at the realization.

She slumped down clutching the arm of the chair beside her for support. He poured her a glass of water. She accepted the glass with a furious look as she sat down in front of him. “How long? How long have you known?” She asked.

“JARVIS did not pick you because he thought you could be my assistant. He pinged your profile in alarm. We knew you were a spy from the very beginning my dear.”

“And your friend Jack, where does he fit in all this?” She asked.

“Oh he doesn’t. He has nothing to do with this.” He explained. “He was bored and I was partly the reason his husband wasn’t there so he came to me. That was it.”

“His husband?” She asked.

“Oh yeah.” He replied remembering how Ianto had looked the last time they spoke. His thoughts must’ve been evident in his face too because the spy before him spoke annoyance evident in her voice.

“Oh, don’t tell me you’re fucking him too.”

Tony looked at her and didn’t say anything. He just shrugged in reply. “We have gone far off topic, my dear spy. My point is, I cannot be seen meeting the bloody director of SHIELD in my office in daylight. Fix this. You lot probably have a warehouse somewhere. Reschedule it.”

“I will.” She replied as she got up to leave. “But he will have a lot of questions. Nothing about you makes sense Stark.”

“That’s going to be a problem my dear. I don’t work for him, I don’t have to answer one bloody question.” He opened the door. “One meeting is all I’m giving him. Nothing more.”

* * *

He looked at the warehouse in amusement. It was quite annoying when everyone took his words literally, too literally. Mentally shrugging, he parked the car and slowly made his way towards the warehouse. He had already made arrangements with JARVIS on what he was to do if he didn’t return till a specified time. He knew how SHIELD operated, he wasn’t taking any chances with this one.

His apprehension and nervousness disappeared as he saw just who came to greet him at the door. He just stood there for a while, taking his fill of Ianto dressed in a sharp suit, looking every inch the agent he was, looking very very sexy. Finally he looked at the unamused face of Agent Ianto Jones, who had one eyebrow raised elegantly.

“Wow.” He finally managed. Ianto’s expression did not change.

“If you would follow me Mr. Stark.” Tony nodded and walked with him.

“And who might you be Gorgeous?” He asked partly just for show, but laying it thick with the flirting nonetheless.

“I’m Agent Jones, Mr. Stark.” He loved hearing that Welsh accent.

“I’m sure you hear this often but that is a very alluring accent Agent Jones.” He said just as they reached a door. He could see Fury standing there, among various monitors and a small group of agents. The whole place looked like they set it up just for him.

“Thank you Sir.” Ianto told him just as they entered. Tony swallowed. Ianto knew just what that did to him.

Fury made his way towards him but before he could say anything Tony started. “Uh huh. Before you start Fury, you have 3 hours. If I don’t get back and check in with JARVIS until then he will unleash hell upon you. And oh, please do try to hack into him. I would love that.”

Fury’s angry face got even angrier. “We just want to talk to you Stark.” He said.

“Last time you wanted to talk Fury, you hurt JARVIS and waited inside my house like a lunatic. JARVIS is like a son to me, I don’t take that lightly.” He simply said. Fury nodded and pointed at him towards a monitor and a chair.

Tony didn’t sit down, instead standing to make a point, although he wasn’t sure what point he was making. Fury’s increasingly annoyed face was worth it however. “We would like to ask you a few questions, Stark.”

“You can ask, but I’m not going to answer all of them.” He replied, crossing his arms. He scanned the crowd for Ianto and found him completely blended in with the other agents.

“Are you dying of Palladium Poisoning?” Fury got right into the point.

“Do I look like I’m dying?” He asked in return.

“How? How are you alive Stark? There is nothing that can replace Palladium and still make that Arc Reactor work. All we were able to do is make something that takes the edge off. How the fuck are you still alive?”

He stopped appreciating Ianto in that gorgeous suit and turned to look at Fury at that outburst. “You don’t look so good Fury. Why don’t you take a seat? Calm down a little.” He said, trying to placate the man.

“I don’t need to calm down. I need some goddamn answers. If you don’t start giving them to me Stark I swear to God…”

“What? What the fuck are you going to do Fury? Your biggest gamble was the fact that I was dying. I was not. You sent a spy to me, I found her out even before she met me. You’ve got nothing on me. I’ve been ahead of you every bloody time and it bothers you very much.”

Fury smiled. “Yes you have Stark but you’re missing one thing. You’re here all alone. Can you guarantee your friends’ safety right now.”

Tony laughed. “Is that all you got?” He asked.

“I told you it wouldn’t work, Director.” Ianto said. “He has already thought of everything. At the current moment they are probably better protected than anyone else in the world.”

“Wow, smart and sexy.” He commented appreciating Ianto once more. “You should’ve sent him instead of Agent Red, Fury.”

“It wouldn’t have worked.” He heard Red’s voice and watched her step in from the shadows. He rolled his eyes at the melodramatic entrance. “He’s happily married. Although I doubt that would stop you.”

“That’s where you are wrong Red. Trust me both Jack and his husband were very much interested.” He said, sending a wink to Ianto's direction.

“Who the hell is that guy? We can’t find any indication that Jack Harkness even exists let alone the Agency he supposedly worked for. Give me some goddamn answers Stark.”

Tony smiled as he finally sat down on the offered chair. He turned to face Ianto completely. “Tell you what, I will answer any question the charming Agent Jones asks me in that delectable Welsh accent of his.”

Ianto looked like he was considering it for a second and then dragged a chair to sit in front of him. He locked eyes with Nick Fury and sat down. “Very well, Mr. Stark. You have me.”

Tony smiled appreciating those long legs. “And I do love it. Ask away Agent Jones.”

“Who is Captain Jack Harkness?” He asked straightforwardly.

“An old friend. We were both very very young when we first met.” It was the truth, just not in the way they would think.

“Bullshit.” Fury spoke up. “I knew Howard. I was there when you were young Stark, there’s no way that’s true.”

He raised his eyebrows, he did not know that. He slowly turned towards Red, looking at her as realization slowly dawned on her face. “Maria’s paintings. He’s the son of your mother’s friend.” She said.

He pointedly said to Fury. “I hate people who pretend like my Mother did not exist. She was more a parent to me than Howard ever was. You say you were his friend and I did not know you Fury, I still go visit her friends.” He cleared his throat, thinking about Maria always made him sad. He faced Ianto and beckoned him to continue.

“What about the agency he worked for?”

“Does not exist anymore, in fact it never did. You can try searching for it, you will not find anything.”

“His husband then. Who is he and where is he now?” Ianto hid it well but he could tell that he was worried about not returning back to Jack. Time was, of course, a finicky thing.

“Now now Agent Jones I cannot reveal his name. Jack complained about me giving him a taste of the life he wanted. I believe he is off chasing that, gallivanting about.” He hoped he answered the unasked question.

“That is very cryptic Mr. Stark.” Ianto smiled.

“I said I would answer your questions Agent Jones, I did not say I would answer them completely.”

“Very well Sir.” Ianto pointedly replied. “The palladium. How did you manage to cure yourself?”

Tony smiled. “For all the shit father Howard was, he was a genius inventor. I rediscovered an element that he discovered but was bound by the technology of his time to actually create. Patents are being drawn up as we speak. It’ll be announced next week. I named it Starkium to honor the old man.”

Ianto looked at Fury after that. “Vanko. Ask him about Vanko.” Red supplied from beside Fury. Ianto nodded.

“What did you and Ivan Vanko talk about? He died only hours after you left.”

“I asked him who he was. I found out that he blames me for something that Howard did to his father and I left him there. He did not die hours after meeting me. That was faked by Justin Hammer. He died in Hammer’s custody, shot by a Webley Revolver.” He replied truthfully.

“How do you know that Stark?” Red asked him. “How the fuck do you know all that?”

“He knows because Jack Harkness shot him.” Ianto supplied. Tony knew Ianto would recognize the pistol. “That’s the only thing he did.” Tony nodded.

“But what about the box and what was in it? You two had a very cryptic and very frustrating conversation about the whole damn thing and you’re telling me that that wasn’t even involved.” She sounded very frustrated.

Tony turned to look at Ianto. “Would you like me to repeat that question for you Sir?” He asked.

Tony laughed. “There’s no need, Agent Jones. That box and the content within was not for me, it was for his husband. I am simply the courier.” He continued smiling at Ianto. “I will give it to him the next time I see him.” Ianto raised an eyebrow but Tony could see that he understood.

“What was in it?” She was getting closer to him now, letting out all the frustration she had endured at her time spying on him. “How can it be amazing and yet garbage at the same time? How are you making it better?”

Tony raised his eyebrows at her outburst. “There are about 25 Patent and IP laws that prevent me from answering those questions. Calm down Agent Red.”

“That is not my name. Stop calling me that.” She shouted.

“What is your name?” He asked softly.

She blinked, the scene before her reminiscent of the conversation they had. She looked up at his patient face waiting for her answer. “Natasha Romanoff. Right now, I am Natasha Romanoff.” She replied.

He smiled. “Thank you. Lovely to meet you Agent Romanoff.” He said in the same soft voice. He turned towards Ianto who was looking at the scene with open curiosity. “Is that all Agent Jones?” He asked.

Ianto turned towards Fury who nodded. “Yes, that would be all Stark. You can go.” Tony nodded and got up to leave. He stopped when he reached where Fury was standing however.

“Look Fury, I'm not averse to working with you.” Fury raised his eyebrow at his speech. “Your organization is very shady, very suspicious, I wouldn’t be surprised if you had a secret prison somewhere where you put all of your enemies without trial or without cause. Imprisoning innocent people doesn’t sound too much of a stretch when you lot are concerned-”

‘Is there a point to this Stark?” Fury asked annoyed.

“Yes. I was getting there. If your shady, morally dubious dealings somehow cause the world to end. Call me. I’ll help save it.” He said and turned to leave.

Ianto got up, offering to walk him out. “You have been the one ray of sunshine in an otherwise dark day Agent Jones.” He commented.

“Thank you sir.” Ianto replied. “I wish I could say the same.” He added cheekily. Tony laughed openly at that and left.

* * *

Tony didn’t really read newspapers often but the front page of today’s paper alarmed him. It shouldn’t have been possible, he shouldn’t have been here on Earth. He supposed that it did make a certain amount of sense, considering how the planets were connected but he could not believe what he was seeing. The gold helmet mocked him, making him feel like he failed once more.

He clutched the newspaper and made his way down to the lab, closing the doors and making sure he wouldn’t be disturbed. He put the offending piece of paper down on the table and brought the monitor to his eye level.

Looking at the nearest camera, he said, “JARVIS get me everything you can about what happened in New Mexico. Every news headline, every shaky phone video, every internet forum talking about it.”

JARVIS compiled promptly. He settled down and read through everything, trying to piece down all he could from multiple sources. Everything felt like it was mocking him, showing him that no matter how many times he tried he would always mess everything up.

He stared at the clearest image he could find, wondering what went wrong. He supposed that that was his curse now, not knowing what went wrong, not knowing what happened after he left. He stared at the blurry image of the young god, adorned with a gold helmet, sorrow evident in his face.

“Oh Loki.” He spoke to no one for the God wasn’t there. “What happened to you?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone who read this fever dream of a fic that I technically wrote in a day. And then spent so much time editing it and then cancelling my edits because nothing made sense. It still kinda doesn't. I'm truly sorry at the parts that seem rushed or less fleshed out. And also for the confusing parts. 
> 
> I kinda wanna write the 3rd fic with it being slowburn FrostIron set during the events of Avengers with Tony just trying to understand what happened to the Prince he met (and maybe sorta fell for) in Asgard. But it just exists inside my head in snippets and parts, and those too don't make much sense. Don't know if I'm actually going to write it or if I'm just going to think of awesome scenes and am going to be unable to put them in paper.


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